Innovative Solutions & Support, Inc. (IS&S, ISD4) will complete ThrustSense autothrottle certification of the Beechcraft King Air early next year with additional capability, including Vmca mitigation and hot start protection. Further, the company will add hot start protection and in-trail spacing to the STC for the FAA-certified full regime Pilatus PC-12 autothrottle during the same timeframe. The King Air and PC-12 ThrustSense systems provide Fadec-like functionality while providing speed-envelope protection, IS&S said.
For King Air Vmca mitigation, ThrustSense continually monitors multiple engine parameters and will detect the loss of an engine and then computes the amount of rudder authority loss due to the reduction of airflow over the rudder. It uses this to calculate the reduction in thrust from the remaining engine to prevent excessive yaw.
Real-time yaw monitoring provides additional safety in engine-out conditions. Hot start protection on the King Air and PC-12 warn the pilot of an impending hot start, allowing the pilot to close the fuel cut off lever to protect the engine.
In-trail spacing will be available on the IS&S PC-12 4D NexGen Flight Deck equipped with ThrustSense, enabling the pilot to automatically follow an airplane along its track at a constant speed/distance as requested by ATC.
The IS&S ThrustSense autothrottle is offered as a $68,000 standalone installation integrated with the company’s integrated standby unit (ISU) for the King Air at a cost of either $325,000 or $225,000 with one or its two of its 4D NexGen flight decks, respectively. IS&S is demonstrating these 4D systems in its booth this week at NBAA 2018.
According to IS&S, the integrated autothrottle is the first full-regime system certified for the King Air. From takeoff to landing phases of flight, including go-around, it allows the pilot to automatically control engine power settings and automatically computes and controls power levels to reduce pilot workload.
ThrustSense computes thrust, holds selected speed/torque, and implements appropriate limit protection. When engaged by the pilot, the autothrottle system adjusts the throttles automatically to achieve and hold the selected airspeed guarded by a torque/temperature limit mode.
Protection modes will automatically activate, regardless of autopilot engagement state in an attempt to keep airspeed, torque, and temperature from exceeding pre-defined targets. During engine out, ThrustSense automatically adjusts the power of the remaining engine below Vmc, mitigating adverse yaw and allowing the aircraft to safely accelerate under full control. The use of the autothrottle ensures stabilized approaches by controlling speeds in the descent, preventing the airplane from getting too slow or too fast and protecting against overtorque and overtemp.
The ThrustSense control panel executes software to control the autothrottle actuator and is available in different sizes for various cockpit configurations. The thrust computer in the control panel computes and controls torque during all flight phases including climb. If the pilot manually adjusts the power lever and approaches torque or temperature limits, the autothrottle will warn the pilot. The control panel features a high-resolution LCD display with full LED backlighting for improved reliability. ThrustSense can be installed with minimum modifications to the existing flight deck and no structural modifications to existing throttle quadrants.
